10 Vanlifers Explain The Worst And Best Bits Of Their New Lifestyle
The rise of the Vandwellers has begun, and this iconic movement isn’t showing any signs of slowing down any time soon. Van life is everywhere; it doesn’t matter whether you’re scrolling through your Van Life Instagram feed or sitting down to read your favourite newspaper, people all over the world are taking notice about alternative living and the benefits that can come with it. People miss work deadlines every day while daydreaming about jet-setting off into the sun in a classic Volkswagen Bus Camper, imagining themselves tanning on a beach with no cares in the world. While it’s true that vanlifers do enjoy this lifestyle on a daily basis, we’re here to tell you that just like everything else in life, it’s not always a bed of roses.
Looking to kickstart your off grid living lifestyle but don’t know which van life costs to cover first? Want to give Full Time Van Life a try but aren’t sure which the best van would be for your travels? Head over to our Van Lifers and Weekend Warriors Facebook Group and join our ever-growing community of vanlifers from across the globe! Pass on vanlife recipes, share the best hacks you’ve discovered while living off grid, and chat about anything and everything related to living in affordable tiny homes!
Vanlifers might get to see the world from the comfort of their travelling tiny homes, but it would be unrealistic to think that this lifestyle doesn’t have its pros and cons. Instagram only tends to show one side of the story; grabbing your phone and taking a picture isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when somethings going wrong, so it’s sometimes hard to show both the good and the bad (and even the downright ugly). We’ve chatted with some of our favourite Van Life Influencers who are out there parked up in some of the best van life travel spots as we speak to get their views on Van Life. What follows is an honest account of their experiences and what it’s like to live life on the road. We can’t guarantee you’ll like everything that you read, some are into their retro gaming on the road, some like do do nothing but that’s the van life folks! Everyone does it differently!
10 Real Van Life Stories From 10 Real-Life Vanlifers!
About Vincent Vanlife
I’m going to get myself out of the way first because I know my own story pretty well! For those of you that never scroll to the bottom of the articles (I don’t blame you, no one want’s to see my ugly mug) I’m Seb, and I travel full time in our tiny house with my girlfriend Rose who also writes for Van Clan. We started converting our van in the summer of 2017 and moved into it full time the following October. We lived in cold and rainy England for 13 months documenting the UK Van Life Hardest Bits that we encountered along the way, and now we’re travelling around mainland Europe to find out more about the van life movement!
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle as vanlifers?
We got really fed up with paying all of our money to a faceless landlord that we had never met and coming out with nothing at the end of the month. We wanted to be able to save up to go on adventures and live a more eco-friendly lifestyle at the same time, and we also wanted to break the mould and do something different to what everyone else around us was doing.
What drew you towards living in a van?
Mainly the fact that we both found out that we couldn’t live on a boat because we felt a bit nauseous after spending some time on one. Rose spent ages trying to convince me to live in a van, and I’m so glad that I finally caved and listened to her. We love the freedom to be able to go wherever we want whenever we want, and we also like the idea of owning our own home. Just because it’s small doesn’t mean that it’s not a cosy living space!
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road as vanlifers?
Five days into our European adventure we took a wrong turn and got stuck in a farmers field. There was no one around to help us, and despite Rose telling me not to do anything stupid I tried to drive further into the field to get to dryer ground. The van slid and almost toppled over onto its side, which was a pretty hair-raising moment (despite the fact I have no hair). A farmer came to save us a while later and dragged us out, but it wasn’t a pleasant experience.
Best bits of the lifestyle?
Not having a plan. We’re vanlifers that wake up and decide where we are going to go while having breakfast and just drive until we find somewhere nice. Its so amazing to not have a set routine and to live life by our own rules. We also love the minimalist lifestyle that we now lead. Everything that we need to live is inside our camper. We have plenty of clothes and gadgets; we’ve even managed to fit some ladders and one of these inflatable bluefin paddleboards inside too! We also like the fact that we haven’t paid an electricity bill in almost 2 years thanks to our solar panel set up!
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
When you forget to check your toilet tank level and it overflows. Cleaning up pee from your van is never nice no matter how you look at it, but sometimes it happens. Breakdowns are never fun either, though I guess that depends on how stocked up you are with food and what kind of place you break down in! Everyone experiences some kind of van problem while out on the road, so it’s a good idea to reside yourself to the fact that you might have to spend some time in a garage. It’s not a big deal, it’s just part of the adventure.
2. The GMC Duo
About The GMC Duo
Richard: a 23 arborist, which is essentially climbing and looking after trees! I Lived in England until I was 21 and then moved to Sweden where I met Sabina and began traveling in a van in June 2019. I have a passion for being outdoors and am always up for something new.
Sabina: a 21 (29) year old mechanic/panel beater from Sweeden. I love the van and everything to do with car mechanics, as well as snowboarding and animals. I am also living with Type 1 Diabetes which is a daily battle that never goes away. I hope to inspire other people with this illness that they can too, do what they want and not be held back by it!
Pat: My name is pat, I’m a Greek street dog who got flown over to Sweden when I was five months old to this weird crazy family…. which I kinda liked!
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle?
We both wanted to travel and see the world because there is so much to see and experience! And also we have both been working since we were 15 and thought it was time to do something different with our lives and not get stuck in the daily routine of work; there are so many more important things in life!
What drew you towards living in a van?
We found out about Vanlife by watching a video on Facebook. I sent it to Sabina and said, “wouldn’t this be awesome!!” After a few weeks of talking about it we actually started looking into vanlife and how it was actually possible to do. We found a van that suited us and then with sabina’s mechanic skills and my (very bad) carpentry skills we managed to build our self a little home on wheels.
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road as vanlifers?
While travelling through Norway we quickly realised that a heavy van and steep hills are not a good mix! We had one moment where our brakes overheated and completely stopped working as we were going downhill towards a junction! Luckily it wasn’t busy and we managed to slow down to about 15kph before getting to the junction so no harm was done.
Best bits of the lifestyle?
Everything! The best sides of being vanlifers are having the time and being able to go wherever you want; it is a pretty awesome feeling! Being outside and finding beautiful places on a daily basis is what this life is all about and you can only find them with this way of travelling without ending up in all of the touristy areas.
Pat: Living in a van is cool, I get to sleep loads and go on fun hikes which I like.
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
You only have a limited amount of space and you aren’t connected to any sort of mains, so when our cooking gas runs out, it’s out! And finding places to refill a gas bottle is harder than you think as everywhere has different adapters, but we make it work. It might be difficult to find, but you always end up finding it! Not having a toilet is difficult too; you either have to get used to doing it alfresco or you have to find somewhere to poop. Richard is happy to go anywhere, whereas Sabina is a little fussier and we have to search for places like McDonald’s. But people, if you going alfresco, then be clean about it! Only ever go in the woods and always take a spade and dig it down and cover it up!
Pat: I don’t know what those yellow and black buzzy things are that get into the van and make my mum scream loads, but I eat them and then she stops. It does sting a little when I eat them but it doesn’t bother me. I also don’t understand these floating things on the water that everyone loves. My vanlifers always want me to get on, but it always ends up with everyone in the water.
About The Indie Projects
We’re Bee & Theo, and we’ve been living off grid in vans and boats for the past five years, documenting our lives online through YouTube and sharing our experiences with the world.
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle as vanlifers?
In 2013 we had a couple of different life events occur which made us think about where we were heading and how we weren’t quite sure that we were on the right path. By 2014 we were living in our VWT4 and travelling in Europe, and we’ve never looked back. Living in a van – or any alternative way such as a narrowboat – is a much more fulfilling way of life for us. We have less room to fill with ‘stuff’, we use fewer resources, explore places we never would have dreamed of, and are in control of our lives having created a career out of our way of life which was a very happy accident!
What drew you towards living in a van?
Living in a van first drew us in with the prospect of travel, mainly cheaper travel. We wild camp 99.9% of the time, allowing us to camp up and stay in gorgeous places. Having our home with us wherever we go also creates a completely different travel experience, being able to curl up in bed if the weather sucks or making a coffee to sit outside with and enjoy the view never gets old!
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road as vanlifers?
Driving through Finland in the winter of 2014; we were the only people on the road, surrounded by trees, and nothing else. Suddenly there’s a loud bang on the passenger side door, which shocked us both and made us stop. Had we hit an animal? Turns out an animal had hit us! An eagle owl lay in the road after flying head-on into the side of the van. Worried it was injured, or even worse, dead, we gingerly walked over to the owl as a crow hovered around ready to get at a quick meal. As we were a couple of meters away the owl jumped up and flew into a tree – never looking back and apparently fine.
Best bits of the lifestyle?
- Having our home with us at all times.
- Bringing our beautiful fur baby, Ginjey the cat, with us wherever we go
- Exploring new places and meeting new people
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
- Running out of water or gas can be mega frustrating.
- Having a mechanical issue with your van
- Break-ins. Always a fear and sadly it happened to us in 2014 🙁
About We Travel By Bus
My name is Kai and I am 54 years old. I have been a freelance Filmmaker and Photographer for many years. Since 2018 I have lived mostly on the road. I still have a home base in Berlin because it’s super cool to have a backup plan and to not be forced to live in a van all the time.
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle?
I got married at 27 and had a small house in Berlin with a garden, a garage and a VW. Somehow I had the feeling that this is what it’s all supposed to be like if you want to be “normal”. It took less than a week to discover that I was completely wrong, and it took another 20 years to discover what was right for me.
What drew you towards becoming vanlifers?
The flexibility, and the possibility to go anywhere, anytime. Once you discover that, it’s pretty hard to go back. Besides that, I fell in love with a minimalistic lifestyle. If you own a lot of things, the things start to own you at some point. Being aware of that fact changed a lot for me. It’s not for everybody, but living small is the ultimate freedom for me.
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road as vanlifers?
I found this great spot in Sintra, Portugal overlooking Lisbon and the coast. It was just beyond beautiful with no one around. I stayed there for some days enjoying the peace of this place. This one night though at 3 am in the morning, 2 cars drove up with 8 drunk kids and they started hammering on the windows and throwing rocks at my bus. It was a complete nightmare. When they saw me getting up they took off. I was pumped on adrenaline for some days after that. I realized at that point that you are actually living on the street and that your “safe place” is not safe at all times.
Best bits of the lifestyle?
Well, being able to go wherever you want and when you want is priceless. Having an ever-changing front yard is the best. As a Filmmaker and Photographer I am constantly inspired by seeing new things and meeting new people. I just love to explore.
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
In most parts of Europe, you are forced to stay at campgrounds if you want to be legal. If you don’t want to stay there, (like I do) you are pretty much constantly on the run. If you stay more than two days in one spot, then people start looking, so it’s better to move on. Over time that really sucks.
Besides that, we are still missing hot water in the Bus. I think that really raises the game. So its way on top of the list.
5. Noemi Zonta
About Noemi Zonta
So, I am Noemi, a 25-year-old outdoor freak from Slovenia. I love to travel, skate, surf and basically spend as much time in nature as possible. I own a little blue van that I use for travelling around. I have two dogs, Apollo and Chia. I picked one from the streets on one of my road trips. Lately I started my little freelance business that allows me to be very flexible. I am pretty wild and I can’t stay in one place for too long, I always have to move around and combine a lot of activities. I don’t drink coffee and I am unsuccessfully trying to become a morning person.
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle?
I am not really sure, but probably my personality. Staying in one place for too long makes me pretty unhappy. I always want to change the scenery around me, feel different places, and explore something new. The first time I tasted van life just for fun I immediately know that this was it, this was the lifestyle that matches my soul and makes me happy and give me the sense of freedom that I constantly seek.
What drew you towards living in a van?
Right now I am not full-time vanlifer, actually, I put it a bit aside this year because this time I didn’t want to run out of money from travelling too much. Instead, I wanted to make a steady ground for future van/travel plans that I have. So last month I had to focus on establishing my freelance business etc.
It was also probably because I love the concept of living a simple life, saving water, being self sufficient with electric energy, always simplifying things etc. All these things make you more connected with the place, nature and people around, and they give you the feeling of freedom. It’s a feeling that you can’t describe; you have to taste it. I just love to feel home everywhere, every little piece of earth can be my backyard. The other reason was probably because it’s cheap. Diesel and food are the only expenses you have.
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road?
Hmm, probably the scariest moment happened this summer in Croatia. We slept on a beautiful beach with other vanlifers around. It was a peaceful, warm summer morning. Suddenly someone started knocking on the window screaming “Open the door!”. This was already pretty scary as it was still kinda dark outside. I didn’t know what was going on; we were not sure if we should open the door or not. When we opened the curtains we saw police cars around and officers walking around the van. Firstly I thought that I was dreaming. But no, unfortunately it was real. We opened the door and got a nice morning surprise; we had to pay 130 euro for sleeping in a van on a beach!
Best bits of the lifestyle?
- It’s cheap
- You can really connect with the place, nature and people.
- You feel at home no matter where you go
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
- RAIN! If it’s raining you are stuck inside, if you have tiny van as I do with kitchen outside and no bathroom it can be pretty annoying, especially if it rains for longer period of time (happened many times, one time I decided to go to the B&B for 2 days; massive storms were constantly around, I was stuck inside my van for 5 days in a row and it was pretty horrible to be honest).
- You have to make some compromises with food if you don’t have a fridge or bathroom.
About Timeless Life Project
We are a couple of vanlifers from Catalonia, Cristina and Eduard, and we are travelling with our two dogs, Vira and Goku. We travel and discover the world aboard our 1989 Mercedes 609D. Timeless Life Project is our new lifestyle! Infinite, eternal, nomadic; a moving life project that has been born by the sum of all of our life experiences.
We had a common life, each working steady job. We lived in a rental house with our dogs, participated in cultural organizations, and enjoyed and shared good times with our friends and family. We had a life like many people, with all of the usual pros and cons. About a year ago we decided to change our lifestyle and we left our routine life, our jobs, our house, and begin a nomadic life travelling around the world to learn and grow personally and professionally.
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle?
We decide to become vanlifers because we wanted to get out of our comfort zone. Leaving routines, stress, and not having time for oneself, getting rid of what we didn’t need. With this lifestyle, we live with less. The vanlife allows us to travel with our dogs in a more comfortable way. We originally planned to travel as backpackers, but the good thing about travelling by van is that you travel with your home, with all the things that you need. Now our home is everywhere, and our garden is the world!
What drew you towards becoming vanlifers?
What attracted us to living in a van was wanting to have freedom, waking up in front of the sea, getting lost in the mountains, meeting people, learning languages, living with less, respecting the environment, especially travelling comfortably, with our dogs.
We travelled as backpackers through South America a few years ago and we have also travelled through Europe with a tent and our car. We saw people with their motorhomes and their vans and we loved the rhythm of that lifestyle
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road as vanlifers?
Fortunately, we have not had any altercations or scary situations. We had mechanical problems with the truck, but our problems have just become challenges that we overcome.
Best bits of the lifestyle?
- We decide at every moment what we want to do and where to go.
- We have very few economic expenses; we don’t pay rent, we don’t pay electricity, and we don’t pay for water.
- We are aware of the importance/value of things. Less is more.
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
- Sometimes not all the places where you sleep are beautiful and/or safe.
- Sometimes people don’t understand that the van is our home, and they don’t respect it as they would a conventional brick house.
About Jozette The Van
I’m Ben and I’m 32 years old. I am originally from Paris, France, but I grew up mostly in Asia. I moved to San Francisco in 2013 for work, and in 2018 decided I wanted to give vanlife a chance and left my job.
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle?
I may be on the older side, but I guess I am yet another millenniall who doesn’t get why in my thirties, after 10 years of working where I always wanted to work, I simply wasn’t as happy as my parents had told I’d be if I managed to live a linear life. Also, having been raised abroad, and having lived in 6 countries and visited over 60, I’ve always had an itch for more travels.
What drew you towards becoming a vanlifer?
It all started when I purchased a 1985 Vanagon in 2017, with the simple goal to restore it on weekends and then go camping and surfing in the area. As the restoration went on I started daydreaming about longer trips, and after my first long trip to Baja California in Mexico, and meeting more vanlifers everyday, I knew I needed more of that.
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road as vanlifers?
I lived in my van in San Francisco for a few months as I was finishing the build. It’s a city that has a terrible reputation in terms of car break-ins. My van was broken into 3 times in a few months – and I was sleeping in the van the last time it happened. Thank god my alarm went off when the window glass broke, but the thief was long gone by the time I woke up.
Best bits of the lifestyle?
- Waking up in a different spot every night… or not, if you liked yesterday’s spot and wanted to stay!
- Meeting new people, and knowing you’ll eventually meet again somewhere else on the road.
- Getting to see so much of Nature’s beauty
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
- Driving a 1985 vehicle, I’d say the constant fear of the next break down, because there’s always a next break down.
- The rain: it’s much harder to keep an interior clean when it’s so tiny and more exposed
Tell us a little bit about yourself
We are two creative souls who both have a passion for adventure, Steph is best described as a cosmic craftswoman, and her creative passions lie within illustration and photography. Matt is a salty seadog who spends the majority of his time in the ocean catching waves or teaching people how to catch them, he is also a professional Photographer. Together we enjoy living a slow life, exploring nature and adventuring in our home on wheels
When we first met working at a surf shop, we would talk for hours about the open road and how incredible it would be to go on a road trip discovering new places, new cultures and sleeping in nature. (and of course surfing every swell that passed) We made a plan, saved up, we bought a van and the rest is history! We wanted to be more self-sufficient, push our comfort zones and not to be bound to one place. We both had a shared interest in ‘alternative living’ from a young age, which drew us together and after thousands of miles later it has created the life we envisioned.
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle?
We seek adventure to follow our passions of surfing, drawing, photography and exploring nature. We’re vanlifers that move with the seasons, spending the summer months working in Cornwall (saving up for our winter travels) then when Autumn arrives we migrate south for the winter. Most of our trips are driven and shaped by the surf and we can usually be found touring the coastline chasing swells while exploring mountains and inland landscapes along the way. Living in our van allows us to do this and gives us the freedom we are looking for, ultimately it allows us to change our address at the turn of a key!
What drew you towards living in a van?
For us living in a van is a conscious choice to be off grid and gives us the ability to move with the seasons. We spend our summer months in the UK in a busy beach town working the tourist season at a surf school. We work extremely hard and save every penny we make, so when winter arrives we can migrate south in the van exploring Europe and North Africa until the late spring.
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road as vanlifers?
We were in a remote part of southern Morocco two years ago and had ventured down a steep muddy track in the rain, when we tried to make our way back up, our drive shaft (the part that is probably the most essential for making your vehicle move) snapped in two! We strapped up what was left of it and slowly rolled back down to the bottom.
While this was going on, an extremely angry and aggressive wild turkey was trying to attack us and peck at our legs. In the mean time we screaming at each other laughing and crying trying to figure out what to do! No phone signal, no internet. We managed to distract it, wait at the top of the road right next to a sewage pit and a super helpful Moroccan man on a moped jus happens to drove past and helped us out! Within a couple of hours he had taken our broken part to the nearest town, swapped it and bought it back with a mechanic and they fit it there and then (while we distracted the crazy turkey).
Best bits of the lifestyle?
Freedom! For us van dwelling is about creating roots in more than one place and enjoying every moment no matter the location. We love to be creative, explore nature and surf, we find living in a van enables us to do this and gives us the freedom we are always seeking. Overall we have learnt it’s about making certain compromises to follow what truly makes us happy: living with less but experiencing more.
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
Constantly being on the move can become really tiring and sometimes you can really burn out, we like to have a steady balance of adventure in the winters and summers stationary. We split our year in two parts annually and have done for the past 5 years; for around 6 months the winters are spent on the road in our motorhome exploring. The summers usually from May- November we spend in the UK (still living in our motorhome but static on a friends land) working the summer season.
You have to work as a team, especially while on the road as van living comes with regular challenges (notably when your van is 22 years old!) breakdowns, travel complications, arguments, being confined to a small space: we’ve been in some tough and even scary situations in the past where we have pulled though and supported each other. With all the ups and downs, we wouldn’t have it any other way!
Tell us a little bit about yourself
We are Jacqui, Allanah and Poppy also known as Brown and Bird. We have been travelling for three years, the last 18 months in a self built camper. Our love of mountains and hiking takes us to mountain ranges across Europe. We are currently hiking in Norway before the snow arrives. We build and manage websites and social media for customers as we travel.
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle?
We were already travelling long term when Allanah became ill on a trek in the Himalayas so we returned home but our house was rented out. I had always wanted to build a camper so was the perfect solution for us and meant we could still travel long term.
What drew you towards becoming vanlifers?
The freedom to spend as much time in mountain environments and park up with beautiful views. Living off grid and minimising our impact was important too. We used to live in a large house that was way too big for us. We don’t need much to truely enjoy life and a camper gives us this freedom.
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road as vanlifers?
We were on Mount Etna on Christmas Eve when she decided to erupt while out hiking. We were rained on by ash as we quickly returned to the van. As we got back to the van the largest earth quake happened at 4.8 magnitude, the ground, us and the van all swayed at which point we decided to quickly retreat. Unfortunately we headed towards the epicentre and encountered 100 more quakes and lava flows in the distance as new fissures opened up. Eventually at 10pm Christmas Eve we were far enough away to relax and get some sleep!
Best bits of the lifestyle?
Parking up in beautiful locations means your garden and kitchen view is always changing. Having a minimalist lifestyle and only owning what you really need to live with.
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
Personal space we all need it at times. Sometimes constantly moving is tiring and you just want a base for a few days.
About Endless Footsteps
We are Daniela (30) & Patrick (31), vanlifers from Germany and one year ago we fulfilled one of our biggest dreams and bought our 40-year old VW LT 28 called Finn. Within two months we rebuilt it into our adventure van! Daniela is a legend in planning and organizing things and Patrick is more spontaneous and moreover doesn’t give up before problems are resolved, so we complement each other perfectly!
What made you decide to live an alternative lifestyle?
It’s the best way to slow down and we chose this alternative lifestyle because of the freedom it provides. We also want to explore more of our own country or continent, which we wouldn’t have done without our van?
What drew you towards living in a van?
Two years ago we quit our jobs to live inter-alia in a 30-year-old Toyota Hiace called Bongo in New Zealand. After this trip, we found out that we definitely need another van here in Germany to experience more of this kind of freedom! Actually, we’re back in our jobs and travel through Europe as often as possible. And who knows-maybe eventually once more around the world!
What’s the most outrageous/scary thing that’s happened while you’ve been on the road as vanlifers?
Fortunately nothing really bad happened to us! But of course, spending a lot of time in a van isn’t all beauty and bliss. It’s not always as captured in the thousands of perfect shots that you see vanlifers post on Instagram. Sometimes it can be really hard to find a spot for the night, you have discrepancies with the partner (especially because of the limited privacy) or you have problems with your van! But the greatest growth often comes from the biggest challenges. Van life is an adventure that will push you in exciting ways.
Best bits of the lifestyle?
- It brings us closer to nature
- Minimalism is good for mental health
- Always waking up with the best views
Worst bits of the lifestyle?
- Privacy
- Breaking down
- Finding free camping
More Content From The Van Clan Team!
- We’ve compiled the list of the best camper van Gear of 2019!
- The top campervan gifts for you and your rolling home.
- Living In A Four Wheel Camper – we’ve got all the tips.
COMMENTS
Please note that all comments will be checked by our team before being approved.